Population Changes in Connecticut, 2010 to 2020
In the past 10 years, the population of Connecticut increased by 0.9%, from 3,574,097 in 2010 to 3,605,944 according to the newly available figures from the 2020 Census. At the same time, the population grew by 7.4% both nationwide and in neighboring Massachusetts, and by 4.3% in both New York and Rhode Island.
Connecticut’s Top 5 Cities
Connecticut’s largest five cities with populations of over 100,000 people remained the same, although their order is now different. Bridgeport remains Connecticut’s largest city with a population of 148,654 (an increase of 4,425 residents, or 3.1% compared to 2010).
Stamford leaped from the 4th largest to the 2nd largest city with a 2020 population of 135,470 people, and the largest increase from 2010 of 12,827 residents, or 10.5%. New Haven (134,023) and Waterbury (114,403) experienced slightly more modest increases of 3.3% and 3.7%, respectively, while Hartford (121,054) lost 3,721 residents, or about 3% of its total population.
Population Growth in Towns and Cities
Explore the data: Connecticut Population and Demographics Changes between 2010 and 2020
Of Connecticut’s 169 towns, only 69 experienced population increase, and 100 saw its population decline between 2010 and 2020. The fastest-growing towns with populations of at least 10,000, were Stamford (+10.5%), Bethel (+9.6%), Danbury (+7.0%), Brookfield (+6.5%), and Norwalk (+6.5%). On the other end were Somers (a decline of 10.4%), Winchester (-9.1%), Montville (-6.1%), North Branford (-6.0%), and Enfield (-5.6%). It is worth noting that the Covid-19 pandemic caused unprecedented challenges for the 2020 Census, and caused demographic shifts which may have had an effect on town populations.
Black, Indigenous, and People of Color
A share of the BIPOC population, or people self-identifying as anything but White, non-Hispanic, including those of two or more races, increased from 22.5% in 2000, to 28.8% in 2010, to 36.8% in 2020.
Read more about diversity from CTData: “How Diverse is Connecticut?”
In 2020, 17.3% of Connecticut’s population identified as Hispanic or Latino of any race, 10.0% as Black or African American (non-Hispanic), 4.7% as Asian (non-Hispanic), 0.2% as American Indian or Alaska Native (non-Hispanic), and 4.6% as Some Other Race alone or a combination of Two or More Races (non-Hispanic).
Towns with a highest share of people self-identifying as Hispanic or Latino of any race are Hartford (44.0; +0.6% from 2010), New Britain (44.0%; +7.2%), Bridgeport (42.3%; +4.1%), Windham (41.8%; 7.5%), and Waterbury (39.6%; 8.4%). Towns with the highest share of Black or African American non-Hispanic population are Bloomfield (53.1; -3.1% from 2010), Hartford (35.5%; +0.1%), Windsor (35.1%; +1.9%), Bridgeport (32.8%; +0.5), and New Haven (30.4%; -3.0%). Towns with large shares of Asian non-Hispanic residents are Rocky Hill (19.2%; an increase of 9.4% from 2010), South Windsor (18.4%; +10.3% from 2010), Mansfield (14.6%; +6.3%), Farmington (14.4%; +6.4%), and Woodbridge (13.2%; +4.6%).
Housing Units
Read more on the topic from CTData: “Connecticut Housing Increasing Faster Than Population”
According to the 2020 Census, Connecticut has 1,530,197 housing units, an extra 42,306 from 2010. The housing vacancy rate dropped from 7.9% in 2010 to 7.3% in 2020.
Seven towns grew by over 1,000 housing units in the past 10 years. These are Stamford (+6,380 housing units, or +12.6%), Norwalk (+2,737, or +7.7%), New Haven (+2,558, or +4.7%), Danbury (+2,408, or +7.7%), Bridgeport (+1,862, or +3.3%), Hartford (+1,437, or +2.8%), and Shelton (+1,028, or +6.4%). In Chester, East Haven, Canaan, Redding, and Winchester the number of housing units decreased by over 100, and in 40 other towns the number of units decreased by between 1–100.
In eight towns, the odds of a housing unit being vacant exceed 1 in 4. These towns with highest housing vacancy rate are Old Lyme (34.3%), Salisbury (31.8%), Sharon (28.2%), Cornwall (26.9%), Warren (26.6%), Washington (25.8%), Morris (25.5%), and Westbrook (25.3%). Towns with the lowest housing vacancy rates are Monroe (3.3%), Newington (3.4%), Cheshire (3.5%), and Wethersfield (3.5%).
For More Information
Visit our 2020 Census Hub for more information about the 2020 Census and to keep up-to-date with data releases and analyses. Be sure to check back as we plan to update the hub often with new data and analyses.
If you are interested to learn more about CTData, check out what we do and the services we provide. For training and tips on how to use data to inform your personal and professional life, register for one of our CTData Academy workshops or browse our blog. You can keep up with us by subscribing to the CTData newsletter and following us on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.